ORIC’s 2nd STEERING COMMITTEE MEETING

As per HEC ORIC Policy-2020, Article 30A to 30D

2^nd STEERING COMMITTEE MEETING OF ORIC SZABIST

MINUTES

1. Attendance

2 .  Date & Time: Wednesday, October 19, 2022, 3:00 P.M.to 5:00 P.M.

3. Venue Meeting Room, 99 Campus, SZABIST Karachi

4. Agenda : 2^nd STEERING COMMITTEE MEETING OF ORIC  SZABIST (Attached)

5. Background: Steering Committee (SC) is the governing body for the ORIC that provide strategic leadership and governance oversight. It bridges the gap between academia & industry and provide advice on the matters to promote industry – academia linkages.

HEC ORIC Policy2020 not only expanded the role of SC in strategic management but also increased its role in periodic reporting. Therefore, to monitor the performance and achievements of the office for the last six month, ORIC SZABIST organized the 1^st Steering Committee meeting under the umbrella of HEC ORIC Policy-2020, under Article 30-A to 30-D.

6. Proceedings — the proceedings of the meeting is divided into 8 points agenda described below:

Agenda Item 1.

Recitation of Quran & Welcome Note

1.1 Bilal the Director, ORIC-SZABIST welcomed the participants and started the formal proceedings with the recitation of Holy Quran. He invited Mr. Fawad Soomro from Engro Corporation Limited to Co-Chair the meeting with the permission of the house. He presented the agenda of the meeting for discussion

Agenda Item 2.

Previous Meeting Minutes

2.1       Dr. Bilal presented 1^st Steering Committee meeting held on October 05, 2021 and opened the floor for discussion. Members of the Steering Committee evaluated the previous meeting proceedings and showed satisfaction upon it.

 

Decision: The Steering Committee approved the minutes unanimously.

Agenda Item 3.

ORIC Scorecard Submission

3.1       Dr. Bilal presented the soft copy of the ORIC Scorecard on the screen and explained each component point by point. He informed the house that ORIC SZABIST claimed 68 points out 100 from Higher Education Commission (HEC).

In the Human Resources and Operation component ORIC claimed ten (10) out of ten (10) from HEC, In the Research Excellence section ORIC claimed twenty two (22) which is moderate in progress. Similarly, ORIC claimed twenty one (21) numbers in Innovation and Commercialization Section and finally, in Sustainability and Capacity Development section ORIC claimed fifteen (15) numbers.

Does these numbers impact upon the overall ranking of the university? Mr. Favad Soomro the Head of Engro Foundation, Engro Corporation Limited asked with the ORIC.

Off course yes, Dr. Bilal replied and gave the details of the overall ranking system of HEC.

Decision: The house appreciated the working of ORIC and approved the ORIC Scorecard submission.

Agenda Item 4.

Project Submission & Annual Report

4.1       By discussing the fourth item of the agenda Dr. Bilal remind that in the last steering committee one point of discussion was the timely submission of HEC projects. He pointed out that in the financial year 2021-2022 ORIC has submitted 20 projects against the different grants announced by HEC.

Mr. Favad inquired about the different grants announced by HEC.

“The Local Challenge Fund (LCF) is a key element of the Higher Education Development in Pakistan Project supported by the World Bank and implemented by the Higher Education Commission (HEC).  The LCF is anticipated to support research projects that address locally relevant socio-economic issues and may also address topics associated with the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)”.

Similarly, “The Technology Transfer Support Fund (TTSF) is a key element of the Higher Education Development in Pakistan Project supported by the World Bank and implemented by the Higher Education Commission (HEC). The TTSF is anticipated to support promising partnerships between academia and industry to facilitate the transfer of university developed technological research to industry and the commercial sector”

Ms. Amber Nasreen Ajum, the Manager Research Operation & Development ORIC SZABIST pointed out that TTSF fund granted from 7.5 million to 15 million fund for each approved project. Whereas, Local Challenge Fund granted up to four million for each approved project.

Mr. Tahir Rafique, the Senior Scientific Officer, Applied Chemistry Research Centre appreciated the project submission efforts and assured his full support in contesting PCSIR (RD 1) project and Pakistan Science Foundation Fund.

Similarly, Mr. Sheikh Bilal Amin Chief Executive of Venus Industrial Cooperation assured that he will provide industrial support & collaboration while ORIC contesting TTSF project.

4.2       In the second component of this agenda Dr. Bilal present the annual working of ORIC SZABIST in front of house by presenting annual report of ORIC for the year 2021-22. He point by point explained different heads of report and mentioned out its details.

Mr. Nayyar Ahmed Siddiqui, a Research Officer in ORIC SZABIST explained the details of his publication “Country Profile and Research & Innovation Indicators of about forty countries.

This publication is an effort of ORIC SZABIST to provide an opportunity to researcher and policy makers to compare different domain of economies with specific focus of innovation.

This publication has a special component titled Innovation, Commercialization and Technology which would definitely helpful for students who truly wants a difference in society.

Ms. Amber Nasreen Anjum informed the house the working of Coursera project and explained that Coursera is the World’s largest online education provider, partnering with best universities & institutions around the World. There is a special emphasis on Technology & Engineering courses which equip students with most in-demand skills around the World. Initially ORIC SZABIST availed the quota of 100 license from HEC to avail this opportunity.

Mr. Khalil Ahmed, Director Member Affairs, FPCCI cheered the working of ORIC and accept that SZABIST has one of the finest ORIC department in Karachi.

Being the member of AERO club I will support faculty and students of ORIC in exploring aviation industry, Sheikh Bilal Amin assured his support in front of house.

Decision: The house unanimously approved the annual working of ORIC and project submission.

Agenda Item 5.

Business Incubation Center & Commercialization of Final Year Projects (FYP)

5.1       Business Incubators Center are one component of ORIC which support new and startup projects in their initial development stage by providing an array of targeted resources and services. These services are developed or arranged by the business incubator and offered by it directly or through its network of contacts.

Dr. Bilal further explained ORIC SZABIST is going to incubate its own center in the financial year 2022-2023 to support final year projects and convert it into successful business entity.

He presented the details of thirty-one (31) FYP projects presented in Zeb -e- Fest Conference held on May 25 -26, 2022 in SZABIST University Karachi. The seed money amount is already given to all winners and runner-up groups.

Mr. Nayyar informed the house about efforts of ORIC SZABIST in commercialization of above mentioned thirty-one projects. A workshop on the subject “Professional Business Proposal and Commercialization” has already been conducted on September 01, 2022.

Decision: The house approved the agenda item number five with full census.

Agenda Item 6.

Discussion & Question Answer

6.1      Dr. Bilal opened floor of the house after getting formal approval of the agenda items.

Mr. Tahir Rafique suggested the ORIC to promote the culture of industrial park in addition of BIC. An industrial park consists of a piece of land designed specifically to promote industrial activities through integration with transportation facilities and other supportive infrastructure.

He asked about the patent culture in the university and assured his support in organizing lectures and workshops about patent writing and patent submission.

Mr. Sheikh Bilal suggested the integration of technical education with the university education. He added that university should produce research papers on the subject of land scarcity in Pakistan. “There should a ban of converting agriculture land into commercial land”.

ZEBTECH would be right forum to complimenting Business Incubation Mr. Favad suggested SZABIST would align management courses with the technical education.

Dr. Bilal concluded the meeting on the note of thanks and invited the participants’ of the meeting for group photo.

As per HEC ORIC Policy-2020, Article 30A to 30D

2^nd STEERING COMMITTEE MEETING OF ORIC SZABIST

Venue: Meeting Room Campus -99 SZABIST Karachi

Wednesday, October 19, 2022 (3.00 PM to 4.15 PM)

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(PROGRESS REVIEW)

AGENDA